All that was at stake for the Broncos on Sunday was the heart of a city.
Before the home team could rally from an 11-point deficit to beat San Diego 20-17 on a dramatic field goal by Jason Elam, the Broncos had to win back the hometown’s faith.
Their own fans were often tougher on the Broncos than the visiting Chargers. Or did you not hear the angry customers at Invesco Field at Mile High booing our local football heroes?
When the Broncos play like zeros, as they did early in the home opener, the people of this fair city now let them hear it.
“Those same people have to go back and say, ‘Oh, man, I booed for nothing. They found a way to win the game. Now, I look like an idiot,”‘ Denver receiver Rod Smith said. “It is hard when you hear (boos) at home. But we’ve got to overcome it.”
After their NFL season began with a meltdown in Miami seven days earlier, this was a must game for the Broncos to rebuild shattered trust around town and quiet shaken confidence in the locker room.
“This win was enormous. We were desperate not to be 0-2,” said Elam, who admitted his heart still fluttered 30 minutes after drilling the game-winner from 41 yards with the fourth quarter down to its final five seconds. “This was one of those games we all will remember years down the road.”
Now in their fifth season at Invesco Field, the Broncos are still trying to make this new house feel like a home.
The team retained the Mile High name. But much of the magic was lost in the move.
“This stadium is nice. But it’s not the old Mile High,” said 46-year-old Richard Valdez, a Colorado native born with Broncomania in his genes.
Oh, the success rate is statistically impressive at Invesco, where the Broncos have won 24 of 33 games.
But tradition is built with playoff victories. The Broncos own none at their new address.
The ambience of a stadium can be felt only in the gut, which is where Denver has been kicked too often in games that stick out in recent memory.
Who can forget a bitter overtime loss to Indianapolis in the November cold of 2002, the blue Monday when New England stole a game in ’03, and that greasy smile Oakland owner Al Davis wore walking out of town a year ago?
“We’ve got to take some of the blame. I would boo us sometimes too,” Broncos linebacker Al Wilson said. “Wins like this one can bring back the feeling of the old Mile High. The old Mile High was special. It was raw. It was beautiful.”
It’s possible to buy a latte at Invesco but hard to find a whole lotta soul.
In fact, when Denver cornerback Champ Bailey dashed 25 yards with an interception for a touchdown to begin the comeback on San Diego’s opening snap of the third quarter, many of the expensive club seats in the stadium were empty, causing one longtime Broncos employee to wonder if fans were too busy sipping wine to notice.
Bailey, however, cranked up the bandwagon.
“Welcome to Champ land,” Broncos defensive end Trevor Pryce said. “Destination you.”
With every sack on a blitz by Denver safety John Lynch or touchdown run by fullback Kyle Johnson, dormant Broncomania found its voice until San Diego was begging for quiet and mercy.
“There was a scent of the old Mile High when the Broncos started coming back. It reminded me a little bit of the Orange Crush. The defense. The crowd noise,” said Valdez, a denizen of the old South Stands in his wild youth who has grown up to be a CEO with season tickets in Section 121 at Invesco. “You need to capture that old Broncos magic. This is the first time it smelled like the 1970s in this stadium.”
When 73,197 fans began stomping feet on stadium steel as Denver rallied with 10 points in the final period, the Broncos could feel the love. The joint rocked. At long last.
Nothing makes a house feel like home like that sweet smell of success.
Staff writer Mark Kiszla can be reached at 303-820-5438 or mkiszla@denverpost.com.
